By Roland Murphy for AZBEX
The Gilbert Town Council will hear a request this week to terminate the development agreement between the Town and SAP Holdings, LLC for the creation of Santan Adventure Park, a proposed four-acre theme park on Knox Road off Santan Village Parkway north of Ray Road.
A memo to the Council from Gilbert Parks and Recreation Manager Rocky Brown says, “The termination is due to recent economic conditions and the current high cost of construction.”
Gilbert issued a Request for Proposal to develop the facility on four vacant acres at Crossroads Park in 2015. SAP Holdings was selected, and a development, operating and lease agreement was executed in 2017. Construction was set to start early this year.
Santan Adventure Park had been planned as a two-phase project. Phase I was to include an 18-hole miniature golf course, a 22-kart go-kart track, a splash pad and a concession stand on 2.4 acres on the site’s southern portion. Phase II plans had not been specified other than to say they would be “an extension of the adventure park,” according to planning documents.
The project would have been at almost no cost to Gilbert. The Town’s only financial commitment was $750/year for asphalt maintenance of the parking lot.
Brown’s memo says the site will be returned to the Town’s inventory of vacant park land until a new use is found that is a correct fit for the community.
